Helping Hands receives $10,000 donation to assist with mental health, services
Helping Hands Medical Clinic for the Homeless and Poor in Gainesville received a $10,000 donation Tuesday in honor of suicide prevention.
Nash Cooper, a once-homeless veteran and community suicide prevention advocate, presented the check to Helping Hands Executive Director Brendan Shortley during a Rotary Club of Gainesville meeting held at the Cade Museum for Creativity and Invention.
The donation was made in the name of Thomas Anderson, a University of Florida graduate, Gainesville native, community volunteer and friend of Cooper who killed himself in 2019 at age 28.
“I hope that it’s a way to really underscore the commitment that Thomas gave to this community – to Helping Hands, and what a servant’s heart that he was, and to also say thank you to the community at large,” Cooper said. “Especially those who volunteer in helping the near-homeless, the homeless, and those impoverished.”
September is Suicide Prevention and Awareness Month, and Cooper plans to continue his advocacy for suicide prevention by petitioning the United States Postal Service (USPS) to create a stamp that brings awareness to the topic.
He said he would soon ask UF officials for permission for students to sign the petition. Once signatures are collected, he said he will present it to U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio.
“While [Thomas] may have lost his own battle, he certainly helped me and so many others in winning in the face of their many battles,” Cooper said. "Thomas was a peacemaker."
Cooper said he knows the struggles of mental health and being homeless. Soon after arriving in Gainesville in 2017 and becoming homeless after Hurricane Irma, it took help from Gainesville Housing Authority to get back on his feet two years later.
Helping Hands Clinic aims to improve the physical and mental health of the homeless and poor through free healthcare and community service. It services include psychiatry, dental care, showers, meals and personal hygiene items.
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Local clinic Helping Hands awarded $10,000
